Baek Jong-won Saves Yesan Market, Real Concern Is 'Rent Surge'

"There Are Things That Encourage Selling Commercial Properties at High Prices"
From 20 Visitors a Day to 5,000
People Gathered, Closed in March, Scheduled to Reopen in April

Baek Jong-won, CEO of The Born Korea, who is promoting the remodeling project of Yesan Market in Chungnam, shared his concerns about 'gentrification.' While it is positive that the once rundown market has regained vitality, there is a risk that rents could skyrocket as a result. Baek expressed his determination to curb excessive rent increases by directly purchasing commercial buildings.

On the 19th, Baek appeared on KBS News and stated, "There is a concern because outsiders are encouraging the owners of Yesan Market shops to sell at high prices."

Yesan Market, which reopened after renovations on the 9th of last month, was directly planned, interior-designed, construction-supervised, and menu-developed by Baek himself. This comes about two years after Baek signed a memorandum of understanding with Yesan County in 2020 and launched the 'Save Yesan Market' project. The market, which previously had only about 20 visitors per day, has now transformed into a tourist attraction visited by 5,000 people daily.

Baek Jong-won, CEO of The Born Korea / Photo by The Born Korea

The problem is the phenomenon of gentrification. Gentrification refers to the process where a deteriorated old downtown area becomes popular after redevelopment, causing real estate prices to soar and pushing out local residents. Despite the success of the Yesan Market project, Baek cannot simply smile about it.

He revealed that he is buying market stores to prevent the adverse effects of gentrification. Baek explained, "If The Born Korea, which I represent, buys (market shops), it could be misunderstood as real estate investment," adding, "We are purchasing them as income-generating assets of a private school foundation operating in the area to stabilize rents." Baek is the chairman of Yesan County's school corporation 'Yedeok Academy Foundation.'

He continued, "If there are stores in the market with price deterrence, other shop owners won't be able to raise rents unreasonably," and added, "Fortunately, the merchants' association and local real estate agents are cooperative regarding rent stabilization."

"Rent was the biggest challenge even during 'Baek Jong-won's Alley Restaurant'"

The 'Save Yesan Market' project also originated from Baek's concerns about gentrification. He shared related stories on his YouTube broadcast in January. At that time, Baek explained, "The reason the stores struggled after SBS's 'Baek Jong-won's Alley Restaurant' program was due to rising building rents," adding, "It was a vicious cycle where eventually food prices had to be raised. It was gentrification, and I was heavily criticized for it."

Chungnam Yesan-gun announced on the 8th that about 100,000 people visited Yesan Market within a month of starting the Yesan Market Revitalization Project. On the 7th, Yesan Market was filled with visitors. / Photo by Yonhap News

He then said, "I thought the only way to block gentrification was to purchase the stores outright," adding, "A private school foundation's income-generating assets can run businesses, but they can also invest in real estate to gain rental income. While forcibly preventing rent hikes is possible, I want to create an environment where rents can be stably and mutually restrained."

He also explained the reason for starting the project. He said, "It was a place full of memories, but when I came, I was surprised to see 'for rent' signs everywhere. The reality that local areas are struggling hit me," adding, "I thought that if this continues, local areas might disappear, so it’s better to preserve the old things." Baek plans to close Yesan Market for the entire month of March to prepare further due to the unexpectedly large number of visitors and reopen it on April 1.